Intelligent network and method for providing voice telephony over ATM and alias addressing

ABSTRACT

An illustrative intelligent network and method for providing voice telephony over ATM and alias addressing are provided that can provide significant advantages. The intelligent network includes a multi-service control point, an ATM signaling intercept processor, and a service administration. The multi-service control point receives an input extracted from an input ATM setup message that includes a called party phone number value and a VToA designator, and generates an alias ATM address of a called party CPE that corresponds to a network gateway in communication with a PSTN switch through a plurality of trunk lines and a desired trunk line of the plurality of trunk lines. The multi-service control point generates an output in response that will be used to generate an output ATM setup message that includes the alias ATM address. The ATM signaling intercept processor intercepts the input ATM setup message from an ingress ATM edge switch of the ATM network, extracts the input from the input ATM setup message, communicates the input to the multi-service control point, receives the output generated by the multi-service control point, generates the output ATM setup message using the output, and communicates the output ATM setup message to the ingress ATM edge switch of the ATM network. The service administration provisions the multi-service control point and the ATM signaling intercept processor. An illustrative method for providing VToA and alias addressing is also provided.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

Pursuant to 35 U.S.C. §119(e), this application claims the benefit ofU.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 60/176,928 entitled FAST MSCP,filed Jan. 20, 2000, that named John K. Gallant, Steven R. Donavan,Terry A. Caterisano, Robert H. Barnhouse, David E. McDysan, Saib Jarrar,Thomas Glenn Hall, Jr., and Terry Robb as inventors, and which is herebyincorporated by reference for all purposes.

This application is related to U.S. patent application Ser. No.09/768,068, entitled Intelligent Network and Method for Providing VoiceTelephony over ATM, and named John K. Gallant, Thomas Glenn Hall, Jr.,and Robert H. Barnhouse as joint inventors; U.S. patent application Ser.No. 09/768,077, entitled Intelligent Network and Method for ProvidingVoice Telephony over ATM and Private Address Translation, and named JohnK. Gallant, Thomas Glenn Hall, Jr., and Steven R. Donovan as jointinventors; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/767,476, entitledIntelligent Network and Method for Providing Voice Telephony over ATMand Closed User Groups, and named Thomas Glenn Hall, Jr. and Steven R.Donovan as joint inventors; U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/768,069,entitled Intelligent Network and Method for Providing Voice Telephonyover ATM and Point-to-Multipoint Connectivity, and named Thomas GlennHall, Jr. and Steven R. Donovan as joint inventors; and U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 09/766,943, entitled Intelligent Policy SeverSystem and Method for Bandwidth Control in an ATM Network, and namedJohn K. Gallant, Thomas Glenn Hall, Jr. and Steven R. Donovan as jointinventors; all filed on Jan. 22, 2001, and all of which are herebyincorporated by reference for all purposes.

Further, this application discloses subject matter related to thesubject matter disclosed in the following co-assigned U.S. patentapplications, each of which is incorporated herein by reference: Methodand Apparatus for Providing Reliable Communications in an IntelligentNetwork, filed Jan. 12, 2000, Ser. No.: 09/481,910, in the names of:John K. Gallant, Cathleen A. McMurry, Robert H. Barnhouse, Steven R.Donovan, and Terry A. Caterisano; Method and Apparatus for ProvidingReal-Time Call Processing Services in an Intelligent Network, filed Oct.20, 1999, Ser. No. 09/421,827, in the names of: Ajay P. Deo, Henry Wang,Sami Syed, and Wendy Wong; Intelligent Call Processing System for aTelecommunications Network (Next Generation Intelligent Network (NGIN)),filed Oct. 19, 1999, Ser. No. 09/420,666, in the names of: Ajay P. Deo,Alan Holmes, Andrew Dugan, Kenneth Fischer, Sami Syed, Terence A. Robb,and Wendy Wong; Method and Apparatus for Supporting ATM Services in anIntelligent Network, filed Oct. 19, 1999, Ser. No. 09/420,657, in thenames of: Andrew Dugan, David E. McDysan, and Sami Syed; and Method andApparatus for Managing Resources in an Intelligent Network, filed Oct.19, 1999, Ser. No.: 09/420,655, in the names of: Alan Holmes, AndrewDugan, Kelvin Porter, and Terence A. Robb.

TECHNICAL FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates in general to the field of data networks,telecommunications and more particularly to an intelligent network andmethod for providing voice telephony over Asynchronous Transfer Mode(“ATM”) and alias addressing.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The need for both voice telephony services as well as data services iscommon. Traditionally, this may only be achieved through the use ofseparate services. For example, dedicated voice telephony services anddedicated data services are provided over separate and distinctnetworks. This is a significant disadvantage because of the high expenseof maintaining and paying for such separate and distinct services, notto mention the inconvenience and inefficiency introduced because thevoice and data services are not integrated.

Packet-switched telecommunications networks may be based on any of avariety of technologies and protocols such as, for example, AsynchronousTransfer Mode (“ATM”), MultiProtocol Label Switching (“MPLS”), InternetProtocol (“IP”), Frame Relay (“FR”), and X.25. Packet-switchedtelecommunications networks have data packets, cells, frames or blocks(hereinafter “packets” or “cells”) that are either of fixed length orvariable length. Although originally designed to transmit data, asopposed to voice or voice encoded data, packet-switchedtelecommunications networks may be used for voice communications. Someof the packet-switched technologies that may be used for voicecommunications include, without limitation, Voice Telephony over ATM(“VToA”), Voice over Frame-Relay (“VoFR”), Voice over Digital SubscriberLine (“VoDSL”), and Voice over IP (“VoIP”).

Focusing on VToA when compared to voice communications or voicetelephony provided over traditional circuit-dedicated orcircuit-switching telecommunications networks, the use of VToA,unfortunately, presents significant problems and disadvantages,especially in view of the fact that the needs of both datacommunications and voice communications must be met over the samenetwork. For example, VToA does not provide advanced telephony servicesand features that are commonly found in traditional circuit-dedicatedtelecommunications networks. Similarly, advanced signaling, alsocommonly found in traditional circuit-dedicated telecommunicationsnetworks, is not available for VToA in the same manner thatcircuit-dedicated or circuit-switching telecommunications networks.

To setup and establish a Switched Virtual Circuit (“SVC”) to supportVToA between a calling party and a called party, various signaling orATM messages are used within the ATM network. This may be achieved usingATM setup and connect messages. Once ATM signaling has established anSVC, a data connection is defined and data, such as voice encoded data,may be communicated. Voice encoded data may continue to be communicateduntil one end of the SVC issues a release message (or any similarmessage that causes a disconnection). At such time, the SVC is releasedand voice communications ceases. Examples of traditional ATM signalingused to setup and release point-to-point and point-to-multipoint SVCsfor telephony applications is illustrated in the book entitled Hands-OnATM by David E. McDysan and Darren L. Spohn, which is incorporatedherein for all purposes.

In a traditional telecommunications or voice network, signaling can bein-band or out-of-band. Signaling may be used to setup and establishvoice circuits, to provide Intelligent Network (“IN”) or AdvancedIntelligent Network (“AIN”) services and features, and to disconnectvoice circuits. In an ATM network, where an SVC is established tosupport VToA, signaling is achieved through the use of ATM messages,such as those used to setup and disconnect SVCs. Unfortunately, such ATMsignaling does not support IN or AIN to provide the advanced telephonyservices and features commonly found in traditional voicetelecommunications networks. This significantly reduces theattractiveness of VToA as compared to traditional voicetelecommunications networks or even some other data or packet networkscapable of providing voice or telephony communications services.

More particularly, a serious problem and drawback of existing VTOA isthe difficulty or inability to institute advanced calling features on anATM network-wide basis. Unfortunately, many customary and advanced voicetelephony services, which are often available through traditionaltelecommunications networks designed to transport and support voicetelephony, such as circuit-dedicated telecommunications networks, arenot available or easily achieved or implemented with VTOA. For example,the capability to block calls from one or more locations in acorporation to other locations or areas, such as a specified country orcountries, is a valuable service or option that is available intraditional voice telecommunications networks. To implement such aservice or feature in a traditional VTOA would require that blockinginformation be provided in various systems and gateways and updated asneeded. This is inefficient, cumbersome and expensive to carry out. Asis illustrated, this type of a service is problematic to implement intraditional VTOA networks and systems. Various other valuabletelecommunications services and features, which may be available intraditional telecommunications networks, suffer from the samesignificant disadvantage illustrated above.

In addition to the significant limitations mentioned above, theadministration and maintenance of VToA systems and processes isextremely burdensome and expensive. For example, numerous private andpublic phone numbers, which change frequently, have to be updated andmaintained in various systems and gateways. As moves, adds, changes, anddeletions occur, each VToA gateway must be updated with the relevantchanges. This is a critical task that is onerous and expensive toperform and fraught with potential errors.

Another disadvantage of VToA becomes apparent, for example, when a callis setup from an origination point on an ATM network using VToA andterminates at a point on the PSTN, or at some point that requires theuse of the PSTN to complete the connection. The connection between theATM network and the PSTN may be provided through a network gateway. Thenetwork gateway is often connected to the PSTN through a PSTN switch,such as a Class 3 or Class 5 switch, through multiple trunk lines. Ingeneral, the trunk line that carries the call to the PSTN switchdetermines billing. The problem surrounds the inability to effectivelycontrol the routing of the call through a desired or correct trunk lineto the PSTN switch to ensure accurate billing.

From a customer's standpoint, if a preferred rate plan is available, thecapability to direct such calls through the trunk line the provides thepreferred rate plan is essential and can potentially translate intolarge savings. Otherwise, one or more other rate plans may be chosen bydefault resulting in significantly higher costs and increasedadministrative burdens related to such inaccurate billing. From a VToAor ATM network provider's standpoint, the inability to effectivelycontrol such routing prevents the provider from being able toeffectively serve their customers and provide accurate billing when aVToA call is made to a called party through the PSTN.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

From the foregoing it may be appreciated that a need has arisen for anintelligent network and method for providing VToA and alias addressingthat provides intelligent network signaling to support advancedtelephony services and features for VToA, while still allowing thebenefits of integrating voice and data communications on the same ATMnetwork and providing the capability to easily and conveniently placecalls to locations on the PSTN with accurate billing. In accordance withthe present invention, an intelligent network and method for providingVToA and alias addressing are provided that substantially eliminate oneor more of the disadvantages and problems outlined above.

According to one aspect of the present invention, an intelligent networkfor use with an ATM network to set up an ATM switched virtual circuit toprovide VToA services is provided. The intelligent network includes amulti-service control point, an ATM signaling intercept processor, and aservice administration. The multi-service control point receives aninput extracted from an input ATM setup message that includes a calledparty phone number value and a VToA designator, and generates an aliasATM address of a called party CPE that corresponds to a network gatewayin communication with a PSTN switch through a plurality of trunk linesand a desired trunk line of the plurality of trunk lines. Themulti-service control point generates an output in response that will beused to generate an output ATM setup message that includes the alias ATMaddress. The ATM signaling intercept processor intercepts the input ATMsetup message from an ingress ATM edge switch of the ATM network (whichis an edge switch that receives ATM cells or messages into the ATMnetwork, as opposed to an edge switch where ATM cells or messages leavethe ATM network), extracts the input from the input ATM setup message,communicates the input to the multi-service control point, receives theoutput generated by the multi-service control point, generates theoutput ATM setup message using the output, and communicates the outputATM setup message to the ingress ATM edge switch of the ATM network. Theservice administration provisions the multi-service control point andthe ATM signaling intercept processor.

According to another aspect of the present invention, a method forproviding VToA using an intelligent network and a switched virtualcircuit over an ATM network is provided. The method includesintercepting an input ATM setup message from an ingress ATM edge switchof the ATM network, extracting information from the input ATM setupmessage, and analyzing the information to determine if the input ATMsetup message set up an SVC for VToA. The method further includesgenerating an alias ATM address of a called party CPE that correspondsto a network gateway in communication with a PSTN switch through aplurality of trunk lines and a designated trunk line of the plurality oftrunk lines, generating an output ATM setup message that includes theATM address of a called party CPE, and communicating the output ATMsetup message to the ingress ATM edge switch of the ATM network.

The present invention provides a profusion of technical advantages thatinclude the capability to efficiently and effectively provide advancedtelephony services and functions to VToA through an intelligent network,including the capability to make calls to locations coupled to the PSTNthat can be accurately billed. This can substantially increase overallVToA performance and make VToA much more attractive to customers lookingto seamlessly and efficiently integrate both data and voice over thesame ATM network to achieve substantial savings, but still retainadvance telephony capabilities.

Another technical advantage of the present invention includes thecapability to utilize an ATM network to provide advanced telephonyfunctions, while efficiently using ATM bandwidth by setting up SVCs tohandle phone calls and releasing this bandwidth when the phone call hasended. This results in efficient utilization of ATM bandwidth and maysave capital costs by reducing the amount of bandwidth needed.

Yet another technical advantage of the present invention includes thecapability to control ATM telephony or voice routing tables in a centrallocation and in the intelligent network layer, as opposed to the priortechnique, defined by the various ATM standards bodies, to control ATMtelephony at the end points. This significantly reduces overall costs tooperate a telecommunications network to support VToA, and significantlyreduces the opportunity for erroneous information entering the network.This advantaged is achieved by separating the ATM intelligence from theATM switching.

Other technical advantages are readily apparent to one skilled in theart from the following figures, description, and claims.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

For a more complete understanding of the present invention and theadvantages thereof, reference is now made to the following briefdescription, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings anddetailed description, wherein like reference numerals represent likeparts, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram that illustrates a telecommunications network forproviding VToA services, such as alias addressing, using an ATM switchedvirtual circuit according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a line diagram that illustrates the signaling and call flowperformed by the intelligent network for a VToA call, including thesetup, connect, and release portions, according to an embodiment of thepresent invention;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram that illustrates an intelligent network usedat the ingress side of an ATM network for providing VToA services usingan ATM switched virtual circuit;

FIG. 4 is a block diagram that illustrates the intelligent network usedat the egress side of the ATM network for providing VToA services usingan ATM switched virtual circuit;

FIG. 5 is a diagram, similar to FIG. 1, that illustrates atelecommunications network for providing VToA services and aliasaddressing using an ATM switched virtual circuit between a calling partylocation of the ATM network and a called party location of the PSTN;

FIG. 6 is a flowchart that illustrates a method for providing VToA andalias addressing using an intelligent network and a switched virtualcircuit over an ATM network; and

FIGS. 7 a and 7 b are flowcharts that illustrate a method for providingVToA and alias addressing using an intelligent network and a switchedvirtual circuit over an ATM network, according to another aspect of thepresent invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

It should be understood at the outset that although an exemplaryimplementation of the present invention is illustrated below, thepresent invention may be implemented using any number of techniques,whether currently known or in existence. The present invention should inno way be limited to the exemplary implementations, drawings, andtechniques illustrated below, including the exemplary design andimplementation illustrated and described herein.

FIG. 1 is a diagram that illustrates a telecommunications network 10,which also may be referred to as an intelligent ATM network or as aSmart Bandwidth on Command (“SBoC”) network, for providing VoiceTelephony over ATM (“VToA”) services using an ATM Switched VirtualCircuit (“SVC”) according to an embodiment of the present invention. Thedescription below in connection with FIGS. 1-4 provides a discussion ofthe operation of the telecommunications network 10 so that the aliasaddressing aspect of the present invention may be described more fullyin connection with the description accompanying FIGS. 5, 6, 7 a and 7 b.

The telecommunications network 10 includes an intelligent network 12,which also may be referred to as an intelligent network layer, incommunication with an ATM edge switch 14 and an ATM edge switch 16 of anATM network 18. A calling party location 20 is illustrated incommunication with the ATM edge switch 14, and a called party location22 is shown in communication with the ATM edge switch 16.

The intelligent network 12 is operable to intercept and process ATMsignaling messages provided to the ATM edge switch 14 and the ATM edgeswitch 16. This architecture allows the intelligent network 12 toprovide various telephony features and services, including advancedtelephony features and services, to VToA provided over an ATM network,such as the ATM network 18, through an SVC.

It should be noted that the ATM edge switch 14 and the ATM edge switch16 may be considered to be part of the ATM network 18. Of course, theATM network 18 may include any of a variety of ATM switches and/or ATMnetwork elements or devices and may geographically span or covervirtually any region. The ATM switches of the ATM network 18, includingthe ATM edge switch 14 and the ATM edge switch 16, may be provided byany of a number of ATM switch manufacturers, such as, for example,NEWBRIDGE and ALCATEL. Of course, multiple connections can be providedto the ATM network 18 through any of a variety of edge switches, such asat the ATM edge switch 14. In order to simplify the illustration of thepresent invention, including the illustration of setting up a VToA calloriginating from a calling party, only two connections to the ATMnetwork 18 are illustrated in FIG. 1 and include the calling partylocation 20 and the called party location 22.

The calling party location 20 and the called party location 22 mayinclude any of a variety of end-user devices and Customer PremisesEquipment (“CPE”). For example, the calling party location 20, whichcould be referred to as an ingress location since this is the callinglocation, includes a telephony device 24 and a CPE 26. Similarly, thecalled party location 22 is illustrated with a telephony device 28 and aCPE 30.

Of course, any of a number of arrangements may be provided at thecalling party location 20 and the called party location 22. In oneembodiment, these locations may also include Data CommunicationsEquipment (“DCE”) to support traditional ATM data communications. As isapparent, the capability to communicate both data and voice over thesame ATM network provides significant advantages and conveniences thatnormally result in substantial savings. This arrangement in combinationwith the present invention allows both VToA calls, with intelligentnetwork features and services provided or controlled by the intelligentnetwork 12, and ATM data transfers to be supported using the same ATMnetwork, such as the ATM network 18. For example, a business enterprisethat has multiple locations may significantly benefit by providing voicecommunications, with intelligent networking features, using VToA anddata communications all through the same ATM network.

In one embodiment, the telephony device 24 and the telephony device 28may be provided as a telephone, a personal computer, a computer network,answering machine, video conferencing equipment, or any of a variety ofother devices operable to support or provide telephony functionality.The CPE 26 and the CPE 30 may be implemented using any of a number ofdevices. For example, and without limitation, the CPE 26 and the CPE 30may be implemented as a router, a PBX with ATM signaling capability, anenterprise gateway, or a network gateway. The CPE 26 and the CPE 30 maybe implemented, in one embodiment, using a CPE device provided byACCELERATED NETWORKS.

The communications link between the ATM edge switch and the callingparty or called party location may be provided using any number ofavailable links, such as dedicated links or leased lines. According toan aspect of the present invention, whenever a customer location desiresto set up or establish an SVC to support VToA, a signaling ATM message,such as an ATM setup message, is provided from the customer location tothe associated ATM edge switch of the ATM network 18. For example, ifthe calling party location 20 desires to establish an SVC through theATM network 18, an ATM setup message may be sent from the calling partylocation 20 to the ATM edge switch 14. This ATM setup message may beused to designate that this SVC is being setup or established to provideVToA. In one embodiment, an ATM setup message is sent from the callingparty location 20 to the ATM edge switch 14 using a predefined orpredetermined protocol such that a designated value, which may bereferred to as a VToA designator, is included in the content or payloadof the ATM setup message to indicate that this SVC is being set up orestablished to support VToA.

In one embodiment, the telephony device 24 is provided as a telephone orpersonal computer with telephony software, and the CPE 26 is provided asan enterprise gateway that is provisioned with a special ATM address toidentify the CPE 26 as an ATM device. An ATM setup message may begenerated by a calling party by using the telephony device 24 to enter aphone number, which may be referred to as a called party phone numbervalue. The CPE 26 generates the ATM setup message, which may be referredto as an input ATM setup message, in response to initiate an SVC forVToA by saving various values in the content of the ATM setup message.

The content may be stored in an ATM setup message using variousdesignated areas, which may be referred to as fields, addresses orparameters. The content that is stored in each such parameter may bereferred to as a value. An example of some of the parameters that may bepresent in an ATM setup message is provided in the following table(Table 1):

TABLE 1 ATM SETUP MESSAGE PARAMETERS Called Party Number Called PartySubaddress Calling Party Number Calling Party SubaddressIn a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the ATM address ofthe CPE 26, which may be referred to as the ATM address of the callingparty CPE, is stored in the ATM setup message as the calling partynumber parameter, the telephone number associated with the telephonydevice 24, which may be referred to as the calling party phone numbervalue, is stored in the ATM setup message as the calling partysubaddress parameter, a special or designated number or address, whichmay be referred to as the VToA designator, is stored in the called partynumber of the ATM setup message, and the dialed or called telephonenumber, which may be referred to as the called party phone number value,is stored in the called party subaddress of the ATM setup message.

This input ATM setup message is then provided to the ATM network 18 atthe ATM edge switch 14. In essence, this ATM setup message instructs theATM network 18 to setup an SVC between the ATM address of the CPE 26 andthe special or designated ATM address that is provided as the calledparty number of the ATM setup message. This special or designated ATMaddress or number may also be referred to as a VToA designator. This isa predetermined or predefined number which will be used by theintelligent network 12 to indicate that this setup message request foran SVC is to provide VToA and hence the advance telephony services orfeatures of the present invention should be applied by the intelligentnetwork 12.

The input ATM setup message is received at the ATM edge switch 14. TheATM edge switch 14, just like the ATM edge switch 16, may be thought ofas divided into two portions, a device side portion and a network sideportion. The device side is the side where a customer or clientinterfaces, generally through a CPE, with the ATM network 18. signalingmessages received at the device side of the ATM switch 14 from the CPE26 are intercepted by the intelligent network 12. The intelligentnetwork 12, which will be described more fully below in connection withFIG. 1 and FIGS. 3 and 4, receives the input ATM setup message generatedby the CPE 26 and analyzes its contents. From this analysis, thepresence of the VToA designator, which in one embodiment may be storedin the called party number parameter of the ATM setup message, indicatesthat this input ATM setup message is a request to setup an SVC for VToA.

Once it is determined that the signaling message is a request to setupor establish an SVC for VToA, the intelligent network 12 will,preferably, perform as much processing as possible on the ATM setupmessage at the ingress ATM edge switch. Before discussing some of thevarious intelligent network services or features that may be provided bythe present invention, the processing of the input ATM setup message isdiscussed. In one embodiment, the intelligent network 12 locates thecalled party phone number value and performs a table search or “look-up”to determine a corresponding ATM address, such as the ATM address for adestination CPE or device, such as a termination gateway, an enterprisegateway or a network gateway. This ATM address may be referred to as theATM address of the called party CPE. In a preferred embodiment, thecalled party phone number value is retrieved from the called partysubaddress parameter to perform the necessary functions to find theassociated destination ATM address. Once located, this destination ATMaddress may be provided so that a modified or output ATM setup messagemay be generated to establish an SVC to support VToA from the CPE 26 tothe destination ATM device. In a preferred embodiment, the calling partyphone number value is stored in the calling party subaddress parameterof the input ATM setup message, and the ATM address of the calling partyCPE or device is stored in the calling party number parameter of theinput ATM setup message.

When a VToA call originates from the calling party location 20 andterminates at the called party location 22, the ATM edge switch 14 maybe referred to as the ingress ATM switch while the ATM edge switch 16may be referred to as the egress ATM edge switch. Generally, each suchATM edge switch may function as either an ingress or an egress ATM edgeswitch.

The output ATM setup message is transmitted from the intelligent network12 to the network side of the ATM edge switch 14 where it is sent to theATM network 18. The output ATM setup message is transmitted through theATM network until it arrives at the network side of the ATM edge switch16. The intelligent network 12 intercepts and processes this ATM messageand, generally, will provide the ATM message back to the device side ofthe ATM edge switch 16 at the appropriate port so that it will becommunicated to the CPE 30 of the called party location 22. If theintelligent network 12 modifies or changes the output ATM setup message,the resulting ATM message may be referred to as a destination or gatewayATM setup message.

A preferred embodiment of an implementation of the intelligent network12 is provided next. The intelligent network 12, as shown in FIG. 1,includes an ATM signaling intercept processor (“ASIP”) 40, which isassociated with the ATM edge switch 14 that is shown serving as aningress ATM edge switch, an ASIP 42, which is associated with the ATMedge switch 16 that is shown serving as an egress switch, amulti-service control point (“MSCP”) 44 in communication with the ASIP40, an MSCP 46 in communication with the ASIP 42, and a serviceadministration 48. The service administration 48, in the embodimentshown in FIG. 1, is operable to provision the ASIP 40, the MSCP 44, theASIP 42, and the MSCP 46. In provisioning these elements of theintelligent network 12, the service administration 48 will, preferably,provide user interfaces to each such element. In a preferred embodiment,the service administration 48 also maintains a database of record, whichmay be the same as or similar to the database shown in the MSCP 44 andthe MSCP 46.

The ASIP 40 and the ASIP 42 will generally be associated with adesignated ATM edge switch, such as the ATM edge switch 14 and the ATMedge switch 16. The MSCPs, such as the MSCP 44 and the MSCP 46, mayinterface or work in conjunction with one or more ASIPs. In analternative embodiment, one MSCP interfaces and works with all ASIPs ofthe intelligent network 12. All of the MSCPs of the intelligent network12 may provide the same or essentially the same functionality.

The ASIP 40 and the ASIP 42, generally, function to intercept ATMsignaling messages, such as an ATM setup message, an ATM connectmessage, and an ATM release message. The ASIP 40 and the ASIP 42intercept and process ATM signaling messages from the associated switchwhether the signaling messages are provided from the device side or fromthe network side of the associated ATM edge switch. It should be notedthat the ASIP 40 and the ASIP 42 are both capable of or operable toreceive signaling messages provided through their associated ATM edgeswitch in either direction. For example, although the call setupillustrated in FIG. 1 illustrates a VToA call that originates at thecalling party location 20 and terminates at the called party location22, the ASIP 40 and the ASIP 42 perform their functions when the ATMsignaling messages are traveling in the opposite direction, such as ifthe called party location 22 originates a VToA call through an SVC tothe calling party location 20. Once the ATM signaling message, such asthe input ATM setup message, is intercepted, an input is generated bythe ASIP and the input is provided to the associated MSCP, such as theMSCP 44 and the MSCP 46.

The MSCP 44 and the MSCP 46 both contain various applications that canprovide intelligent network and even advanced intelligent network VToAservices and features. The applications will preferably be provided assoftware applications that provide the desired logic and algorithms toachieve the desired intelligent network service or feature. Inperforming these various services and features, the MSCPs must accessvarious information that may include, for example, ATM addresses,associated telephone numbers, customer profiles, user profiles, and anyof a variety of other needed information to support or provide thedesired service and feature.

As a result of the processing performed by the MSCP 44 and the MSCP 46,an output is generated. The output is then provided back down, asrepresented by the arrows extending from the MSCPs to their associatedASIPs, so that the ASIP 40 and the ASIP 42 may assemble the output togenerate a resulting ATM message. The ASIP, in a preferred embodiment,also provides call modeling functionality that allows multiple calls tobe modeled.

To illustrate the operation of the intelligent network 12 to provideintelligent network functionality to the telecommunications network 10and the ATM network 18, the establishment of an SVC for VToA isillustrated next. Assuming that the calling party location 20 initiatesthe establishment or setup of an ATM SVC for VToA with the telephonydevice 28 of the called party location 22, the CPE 26 of the callingparty location 20 responds to the request by the telephony device 24 tosetup a phone call. The CPE 26 generates an input ATM setup message andprovides this input ATM setup message to the ATM edge switch 14. The ATMedge switch 14 may be thought of as having a device side portion and anetwork side portion, just like the ATM edge switch 16. The input ATMsetup message is received at the device side of the ATM edge switch 14and is intercepted by the ASIP 40.

The ASIP 40 processes the input ATM setup message and, using one or moreof the various values that may be stored within or in association withthe input ATM setup message, generates an input. The input is thencommunicated or provided to the MSCP 44. The MSCP 44 may provide anynumber of telephony services and features. The MSCP 44, however, mustanalyze the input to determine if the input ATM setup message is arequest for an SVC for VToA. In a preferred embodiment, a predefined orpredetermined value is stored within the called party number parameterof the input ATM setup message. The value provided within this calledparty number parameter of the input ATM setup message is analyzed todetermine if the input ATM setup message is requesting an SVC for VToA.In one embodiment, the value stored within the called party numberparameter of the input ATM setup message may be referred to as a VToAdesignator, i.e., designating that the input ATM setup message is arequest for an SVC for VToA. It should be understood, however, that anyof a variety of ATM setup messages parameters may be used to providethis functionality. The CPE 26, which originally generated the input ATMsetup message, will store the appropriate VToA designator value withinthe appropriate parameter, such as the called party number parameter,when generating the input ATM setup message so that the appropriate MSCPassociated with the ingress ATM edge switch will recognize the input ATMsetup message as one requesting an SVC for VToA.

If the VToA designator is not found, the MSCP 44 will provide an outputto the ASIP 40 and the ATM setup message will continue as if a requestis being made to establish or setup an SVC for a data transfer. If theVToA designator is found, additional service and feature processing mayproceed. In order for the SVC for VToA to be established, a called partyphone number value, which will be included as part of the input from theASIP 40, will need to correlated by the MSCP 44 with a correspondingvalue that is equal to the ATM address of the called party CPE, which isin this case is the CPE 30. If the called party phone number value isnot found, the call may fail or be rejected. The ATM address of thecalled party CPE and the called party phone number value, along with anyother values generated as a result of the processing that may haveoccurred through any of a variety of services and features that may beprovided by the MSCP 44, results in the MSCP 44 generating an output.The output is received and used by the ASIP 40 to generate or assemblean output ATM setup message.

The output ATM setup message may then be provided to the network side ofthe ATM edge switch 14 where it is then routed through the ATM network18 using traditional or available ATM protocols until the output ATMsetup message is received at the network side of the ATM edge switch 16.Of course, the ATM network 18 may include any of a variety or any numberof ATM switches, such as the ATM switches 18 a, 18 b, 18 c, and 18 d. Itshould also be noted that any number of additional ATM edge switches maybe connected to the ATM network 18 through virtually any available ATMswitch or ATM network element.

The output ATM setup message is received at the network side of the ATMedge switch 16 where the ASIP 42 intercepts the signaling message andgenerates an input. The input is provided from the ASIP 42 to the MSCP46. The MSCP 46, similar to the MSCP 44, analyzes the input to determinewhat, if any, processing is needed. In this case, the MSCP 46 finds theATM address of the called party CPE, which in this case is the CPE 30,in the input and provides appropriate routing information and generatesa corresponding output of the MSCP 46. Of course, various otherprocessing may also occur, depending on the particular feature orservice.

The ASIP 42 receives the output from the MSCP 46 and generates orassembles another setup message. In one embodiment, the resulting ATMsetup message may be referred to as a destination or gateway ATM setupmessage since it will ultimately be provided to the CPE 30, which may beimplemented as an enterprise gateway, a network gateway or any of avariety of telephony access devices. If the output ATM setup message isnot changed by the output from the MSCP 46, the resulting ATM setupmessage may still be referred to as the output ATM setup message and itis provided to the device side of the ATM edge switch 16, just like anydestination or gateway setup message, where it is then provided to theCPE 30.

At the CPE 30, the appropriate telephony device, in this case telephonydevice 28, is contacted so that a call may be established or setup. Inresponse, the CPE 30 may generate an ATM connection message or any otherATM signaling message which is available and would be known of ordinaryskill in the art. For example an ATM connection message and an ATMrelease message may be generated during this VToA call.

FIG. 2 is a line diagram 100 that illustrates the signaling and callflow performed by the intelligent network for a VToA call, including thesetup, connect, and release portions of the VToA call, according to anembodiment of the present invention. The VToA call is achieved throughthe use of an ingress device 102, an ingress ATM edge switch 104, aningress ASIP 106, and ingress MSCP 108, an ATM network 110, an egressATM edge switch 112, an egress ASIP 114, an egress MSCP 116, and anegress device 118. Starting in the upper lefthand portion of FIG. 2, aninput ATM setup message is generated and provided from the ingressdevice 102 to the ingress ATM edge switch 104.

The ingress device 102 may be any of a variety of devices such as theCPE 26 of FIG. 1, a router, a PBX, a telephony access device, or agateway, such as an enterprise gateway or a network gateway to provideaccess to the Public Switched Telephone System (“PSTN”). Generally, theingress device 102 must simply have the capability to generate an inputATM setup message that includes a VToA designator stored in the calledparty number parameter of the input ATM setup message (or other locationor parameter depending on the intelligent network design), and a calledparty phone number value stored in the called party subaddress parameterof the input ATM setup message. In other embodiments, the input ATMsetup message may also contain the value of the ATM address of thecalling party CPE and the calling party phone number value. In such acase, these values are preferably stored in the calling party numberparameter and the calling party subaddress parameter, respectively, ofthe input ATM setup message. Line 120 represents the communication ofthe input ATM setup message from the ingress device 102 to the ingressATM edge switch 104.

It should be noted that the line diagram 100 illustrates only the basicsignaling and call flow of a VToA call. Other signals or messages, whichwould be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art and normallyprovided automatically as part of one or more ATM specifications such asthe ATM Forum UNI 3.1 and/or UNI 4.0, may include various acknowledgmentsignals or messages, such as connect acknowledge, a call proceedingmessage, and a release complete message.

The ingress ATM edge switch 104 receives the input ATM setup message andcommunicates it to the ingress ASIP 106 as represented by a line 122.The ingress ASIP 106 provides various values and addresses containedwithin various parameters of the input ATM setup message and providesthose values to the ingress MSCP 108 as shown in a line 124. Forexample, the ingress ASIP 106 may provide the VToA designator, which maybe stored in the called party number parameter of the input ATM setupmessage, and the called party phone number value, which may be stored inthe called party subaddress parameter of the input ATM setup message, tothe ingress MSCP 108. The VToA designator is used in the presentinvention to indicate that a setup message is requesting to set up anSVC for VToA.

After the ingress MSCP 108 confirms, by analyzing the value of the VToAdesignator, that an SVC for VToA is requested, the ingress MSCP 108 mayperform any of a variety of advanced telephony functions to provide VToAservices and features as desired or requested. If a VToA designator isnot found by the MSCP 108 during setup, an ATM data call may be assumed.The ingress MSCP 108 may provide any of a variety of advanced telephonyfunctions to provide VToA services and features. Example of some ofthese services and features include Default Calling Party NumberHandling (“DCH”), Source Address Validation (“SAV”), Customer PortMaximum Call Attempt Rate Limit (“CMR”), Closed User Group (“CUG”),Destination Address Screening (“DAS”), Source Address Screening (“SAS”),Customer Port Maximum Burst Size Limit (“CMDS”), Customer Port AggregateBandwidth Limit (“CBW”), Customer Port Maximum Concurrent Calls inProgress Limit (“CMC”), Private Address Translation (“PAT”), CustomerPort Service Class Selection (“CSCS”), and Point-to-Multipoint,Root-Initiated Connections (“P2MR”). Preferably, most of the intelligentnetwork features and processing are performed at the ingress MSCP 108.In some cases, such as, for example, PAT, additional intelligentnetworking service or feature processing must be performed at otherlocations, such as the egress MSCP 116.

A brief summary of the calling services and features mentioned above isprovided. DCH provides logic to handle input ATM setup messages in whicha calling party phone number value is not provided. In such a case, theDCH feature may substitute a default calling party phone number value.SAV determines whether a user is requesting a call through an authorizedor proper port. VToA privileges may be given on a per port basis, andthe SAV feature may insure that only authorized users are allowed toaccess the ATM network through particular network ports, such as aphysical port or a Customer Logic Port (“CLP”). CMR may be used toverify that the number of access attempts at a CLP does not exceed aprovisioned or predetermined rate.

The CUG feature allows various users of an enterprise or customer to bepartitioned into defined user groups. This allows various policies orprivileges to be enforced on a group basis. A basic feature of CUG is toprovide the capability to restrict calls to other users outside of theCUG or within certain other closed user groups. The DAS and SAS servicesor features provide call-screening lists that allow either theoriginating party or the terminating party to define the addresses towhich calls can be made or from which calls can be received,respectively. In one embodiment, two types of call-screening lists maybe supported for each user or subscriber that include a group list and auser list. This allows these services or features to be provided eitheron a group basis, an individual user basis, or both. The CMBS and CBWservices or features provide a mechanism in which burst-size andbandwidth requests may be limited. This may prevent a few users fromallocating large amounts of bandwidth and ATM network capability at theexpense of other users. Similarly, the CMC feature limits the number ofconnections through a particular port.

The PAT service provides the significant advantage of allowing acustomer to keep its own ATM numbering or addressing scheme. PAT is anexample of a feature that requires ATM intelligent network processing,according to an embodiment of the present invention, at both the ingressATM edge switch and the egress ATM edge switch. The CSCS featureprovides a mechanism to configure the service classes available for aparticular customer, which may be set up through an individual CLP. Asan example, CSCS may support the capability to configure various classesof service such as Continuous Bit Rate (“CBR”), Variable Bit Rate,Non-Real Time (“VBR-NRT”), Variable Bit Rate, Real Time (“VBR-RT”),Unspecified Bit Rate (“UBR”), and Available Bit Rate (“ABR”). The P2MRfeature or service allows for point-to-multipoint VToA to be providedusing an SVC. These types of connections are unidirectional and, just aswith point-to-point connections, can support virtually any type ofcontent such as voice or video.

Referring back to FIG. 2, the ingress MSCP 108 will provide any of anumber of various features, such as those just described, by performingany of a number of database or table queries and executing any of anumber of applications or algorithms. As a result, the ingress MSCP 108provides an output back to the ingress ASIP 106 as represented by theline 126. This output will be used by the ingress ASIP 106 to generatean output ATM setup message. The output will normally include an ATMaddress of the called party CPE. The CPE may be implemented as, forexample, an enterprise gateway, a network gateway, or virtually anyother telephony access device. The ingress ASIP 106 assembles orgenerates the output ATM setup message and provides this message to theingress ATM edge switch 104 as represented by a line 128 of FIG. 2.

The output ATM setup message then passes through the ATM network 110until it reaches the egress ATM edge switch 112. This is represented bya line 130. Similar to how the input ATM setup message was processed bythe ingress devices, the egress devices process the output ATM setupmessage. Initially, the output ATM setup message is intercepted by theegress ASIP 114 once it reaches the egress ATM edge switch 112. This isrepresented by a line 132.

The egress ASIP 114 transfers various input values from the output ATMsetup message to the egress MSCP 116. The egress MSCP 116 may providevarious processing, but as mentioned above, most of the intelligentnetwork service or feature processing will, preferably, be performed atthe ingress side. The egress MSCP, in one embodiment, receives the ATMaddress of called party CPE and determines which port of the egress ATMedge switch 112 the setup message should be provided so that it may becommunicated to the egress device 118. The egress MSCP 116, depending onthe processing performed, may modify the input provided from the egressASIP 114 and generate an output that is provided back to the egress ASIP114, which is represented by a line 136 in FIG. 2.

The egress MSCP 116 may provide various applications, logic, and thelike to carry out any of a variety of advanced intelligent networkfeatures. The egress MSCP 116 may contain various data provided intables or databases, or have the capability to access data external tothe egress MSCP 116. It should also be noted that the features orservices provided by the egress MSCP 116 and the ingress MSCP 108 may beachieved by the same MSCP. The ASIPs, however, will generally beassociated or dedicated to each ATM edge switch that the ASIP serves. Itshould also be noted that although the egress MSCP 116 is shown in FIG.2 serving as an egress device 118, whenever the egress device 118originates an SVC for VToA over the ATM network 110, the egress MSCP 116will generally function as just described for the ingress MSCP 108.

The egress device 118, just as with the ingress device 102 describedabove, may be virtually any available CPE device such as, for example,an enterprise gateway, a network gateway, or a telephony access device.If the egress device 118 is an enterprise gateway, the egress MSCP 116will generally not modify the input provided to it from the egress ASIP114 and thus the egress ASIP 114 will receive an output from the egressMSCP 116 that is the same or similar as the input. In such a case, theoutput ATM setup message is provided to the egress ATM edge switch 112where it is then provided to the egress device 118 to establish an SVCfor VToA. This is represented by lines 138 and 140.

If the egress device 118 is a network gateway, or some similar device,the egress MSCP 116 may perform database operations to properly routethe setup message to the egress device 118. In such a case, the egressMSCP 116 generates appropriate output and provides this output to theegress ASIP 114, as represented by the line 136. The egress ASIP 114then assembles or generates another ATM setup message, which may bereferred to as a destination or gateway ATM setup message, and providesthis setup message to the egress ATM edge switch 112, which thenprovides such message to the egress device 118. This is represented bylines 138 and 140.

Once a party answers a telephony device, the egress device 118 generatesan ATM connect message. This connect message is illustrated in FIG. 2 bylines 142-162. The ATM connect message propagates through the ATMnetwork 110 until a connection is made between the ingress device 102and the egress device 118. The ATM connection message is processed,similar to the ATM setup message, such that the ingress and egress ASIPsand MSCPs intercept and analyze each such signaling messages. At thispoint, an SVC has been established between the ingress device 102 andthe egress device 118 through the ATM network 110 to provide VToA withintelligent network services and features. The MSCP and the ASIP mayalso provide call modeling to track various calls.

Once a party desires to end the call, which can come from either theingress device 102 or the egress device 118, an ATM release message isgenerated. In FIG. 2, this ATM release message is generated by theingress device 102. This proceeds similar to the connect and setupmessages and is illustrated in FIG. 2 by the lines 164-186. This endsthe VToA call.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram that illustrates an intelligent network 300used at the ingress side of an ATM network for providing VToA servicesusing an ATM switched virtual circuit. The intelligent network 300includes an ASIP 302, an MSCP 304, and a service administration 306. Aremote, external database 308 is also shown in FIG. 3 with acommunications link with the MSCP 304. The database 308 is provided toillustrate the fact that the MSCP 304 may rely on external databases ortables. The service administration 306 may also contain various tablesor databases that the MSCP 304 accesses or that is provided to the MSCP304 as a database of record.

The ASIP 302 interfaces with an ATM edge switch, not shown in FIG. 3,and is capable of intercepting and receiving ATM message signals, suchas ATM setup, connect, and release messages. When the ATM edge switchserves as the ingress ATM edge switch, the ASIP 302 receives ATMsignaling messages from the device side of the ingress ATM edge switch.To establish an SVC to provide VToA, the ingress ATM edge switchprovides an input ATM setup message from its device side to the ASIP302. In addition to the functions described next, the ASIP 302 may alsoprovide call modeling functionality. The ASIP 302 receives the input ATMsetup message and, in one embodiment, extracts various information, suchas the called party phone number value and the VToA designator, andcommunicates this information to the MSCP 304 as an input. Thecommunications link between the MSCP 304 and the ASIP 302 may be a localconnection or it may be a remote or long distance link. In oneembodiment, the called party phone number value is stored in the calledparty subaddress parameter of the input ATM setup message and the VToAdesignator is stored in the called party number parameter of the inputATM setup message.

The MSCP 304, which also may be referred to as a policy server, includesvarious applications 310 and a database 312. The applications 310 mayinclude any of a variety of software programs, logic, and algorithmsthat serve to provide VToA services and features. The database 312 mayinclude any of a variety of tables and information useful to provideVToA services and features.

The service administration 306 is capable of provisioning the MSCP 304,and in some embodiments, the ASIP 302. The service administration 306may control or synchronize multiple MSCPs ensure that data orinformation in various MSCPs of the ATM network are coordinated andconsistent.

The MSCP 304 receives the input from the ASIP 302 and can provide anynumber of VToA services and features. In order to establish an SVC forVToA, the MSCP 304 must determine if the input, provided by the ASIP 302from the input ATM setup message, is a request to establish an SVC forVToA. If not, processing of an ATM data call proceeds. The MSCP 304, ina preferred embodiment, determines that the input ATM setup message isrequesting an SVC to establish VToA by looking for the presence of theVToA designator. If present, the MSCP 304 uses the database 312 todetermine the ATM address of the called party CPE using the called partyphone number value provided as an input from the ASIP 302. The MSCP 304may provide any of a variety of additional services and features, suchas those described above in connection with FIG. 2, and will, generally,use the applications 310 and the database 312 to achieve these servicesand features. The MSCP 304 generates an output in response to theprocessing just described and communicates this output to the ASIP 302.If a VToA is to be set up, the output will generally include at leastthe called party phone number value and the ATM address of the calledparty CPE.

To illustrate some of the processing that may be performed by the MSCP304 on the input provided by the ASIP 302, the following examples areprovided. Assuming that an ATM address of the calling party CPE isprovided as part of the input ATM setup message, and preferably as thecalling party number parameter, the ASIP 302 may provide this as aninput to MSCP 304. The value of this address is then used to determinewhat services or features are available for this particular address. TheMSCP 304 may also, by examining the value of the called party phonenumber value provided in the called party subaddress parameter of theinput ATM setup message, determine or perform database queries todetermine if the requested call is to a private number, a long distanceor international number, a local number, an emergency number, etc. In apreferred embodiment, this is performed using various tables, which maybe provided in the database 312, and by examination of the prefix digitsof the called party phone number value. The MSCP 304 may also remove oradd prefix or suffix digits to the called party phone number value. Theresult of any such prefix/suffix manipulation results in a revisedcalled party phone number value. This revised number may then be used todetermine a corresponding ATM address of the called party CPE.

The MSCP 304 may also, depending on the features and capabilitiesassociated with one or more of the calling party phone number value, theATM address of the calling party CPE, and the called party phone numbervalue, consult a database or table of provisioned information todetermine whether the called party phone number value should betranslated to some other phone number and whether permission to makesuch a call is available. For example, the destination party may haveforwarded their phone number to another phone number. In such a case,the MSCP 304 may determine that the called party phone number valueshould be translated to another called party phone number value. In sucha case, the MSCP 304 may request whether the calling party haspermission or sufficient rights to place a call to the translated orforwarded called party phone number.

As a result of the various manipulations and features and servicesprovided by the MSCP 304, an output is provided to the ASIP 302. TheASIP 302 assembles or generates an output ATM setup message using theoutput from the MSCP 304. In a preferred embodiment, the resultingcalled party phone number value is stored in the called party subaddressparameter of the output ATM setup message, and the original callingparty phone number value is stored in the calling party subaddress ofthe output ATM setup message. In addition, the output ATM setup messagemay include the ATM address of the calling party CPE stored in thecalling party number parameter, and the calling party phone number valuestored in the calling party subaddress. As an example, the following twotables illustrate various parameters and corresponding values oraddresses of the input ATM setup message (Table 2) and the output ATMsetup message (Table 3).

TABLE 2 INPUT ATM SETUP MESSAGE PARAMETERS VALUE Called Party NumberVToA designator Called Party Subaddress Called party phone number valueCalling Party Number ATM address of the calling party CPE Calling PartySubaddress Calling party phone number value

TABLE 3 OUTPUT ATM SETUP MESSAGE PARAMETERS VALUE Called Party NumberATM address of the called party CPE Called Party Subaddress Called partyphone number value Calling Party Number ATM address of the calling partyCPE Calling Party Subaddress Calling party phone number valueThe ASIP 302 provides the output ATM setup message to the ATM networkside of the ATM ingress edge switch where the output ATM setup messageis provided to the ATM network and eventually delivered at theappropriate egress ATM edge switch to establish the SVC for VToA.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram that illustrates the intelligent network 300used at the egress side of the ATM network, such as the ATM network 18of FIG. 1, for providing VToA services and features using an ATMswitched virtual circuit. Thus, in one embodiment of the presentinvention, the ASIP 302 and the MSCP 304 may provide intelligent networkservices and features to an ATM edge switch serving as an ingress ATMedge switch and an egress ATM edge switch, depending on how a VToA callis established.

When serving the associated ATM edge switch that is functioning as anegress switch, the intelligent network 300 receives the output ATM setupmessage from the ATM network. As mentioned above, the egress ATM edgeswitch may be considered part of the ATM network. The egress ATM edgeswitch provides the output ATM setup message to the ASIP 302.

The ASIP 302 intercepts the output ATM setup message from the egress ATMedge switch and generates or extracts an input to provide to the MSCP304. This input may include any of a variety of values provided by theoutput ATM setup message. For example, the input may include the ATMaddress of the called party CPE.

At the egress side, the MSCP determines the appropriate port or CLP ofthe egress ATM edge switch in which to route the ATM setup message. TheMSCP 304, however, may provide any of a variety of services andfeatures, and may provide additional routing information.

In the event that the MSCP 304 generates an output such that the ASIP302 assembles or generates an ATM setup message that is different fromthe output ATM setup message, this new ATM setup message may be referredto as a destination or gateway ATM setup message. In any event, the ASIP302 provides the ATM setup message to the device side of the egress ATMedge switch so that the ATM setup message may be provided to theappropriate CPE. Of course, the CPE may be provided as any number ofdevices such as an enterprise gateway, a network gateway, or variousother telephony equipment. The CPE will generally interpret the ATMsetup message by looking at the called party phone number value stored,preferably, in the called party subaddress parameter of the ATM setupmessage to determine how to make the final connection to the appropriatetelephony device.

FIG. 5 is a diagram, similar to FIG. 1, that illustrates atelecommunications network 10 for providing VToA services and aliasaddressing using an ATM switched virtual circuit between a calling partylocation of the ATM network and a called party location of the PSTN. Thevarious network elements, devices and switches of the telecommunicationsnetwork 10 are as described in connection with FIG. 1, except the calledparty location 22. The called party location 22 is provided in FIG. 5with a telephony device 28 in communication with the telecommunicationsnetwork 10 through the PSTN and a network gateway.

The operations of the telecommunications network 10 as shown in FIG. 5as compared to the operation of the telecommunications network 10 ofFIG. 1 are the same except that the MSCP 44 as shown in FIG. 5 providesa service or feature known as alias addressing. This service or feature,which is described below in connection with FIGS. 6, 7 a, and 7 b,provides an alias ATM address of the called party CPE, which in thiscase is a network gateway 30, that corresponds to: (i) the ATM addressof the network gateway 30, which is in communication with a PSTN switchthrough a plurality of trunk lines, and (ii) a designated one of theplurality of trunk lines. This provides the significant advantage ofallowing a desired or designated trunk line to be selected so that thePSTN switch will correctly calculate billing of such a VToA call.

The called party location 22 includes a network gateway 30, a PSTN 60with a PSTN switch 68, and a telephony device 28. A plurality of trunklines couple the network gateway 30 with the PSTN switch 68. Theplurality of trunk lines are represented in FIG. 5 through a trunk line62, a trunk line 64, and a trunk line 66.

In operation, the network gateway 30 receives an output ATM setupmessage from the egress ATM edge switch 16. The network gateway 30 isprovisioned or has the capability of analyzing the output ATM setupmessage, which includes the alias addressing, and determining which ofthe plurality of trunk lines is designated to communicate or setup theconnection with the PSTN switch 68 of the PSTN 60. Generally, the trunkline in which a call or connection is received by the PSTN switch 68will determine how the PSTN switch 68 will determine or calculate a billor billing rate for such a connection. For example, the trunk line 62may be selected by the network gateway based on the alias address, whichidentifies the trunk lines 62 and is included as part of the output ATMsetup message.

Once a trunk line is selected, the network gateway 30 establishescommunication with the PSTN switch through such trunk line so that thetelephony device 28, which is in communication with the PSTN 60, willultimately be contacted so that a call or connection may proceed. As isillustrated, this provides the significant advantage of allowing VToA tobe achieved while still providing accurate billing through the PSTN.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart that illustrates a method 600 for providing VToAand alias addressing using an intelligent network and a switched virtualcircuit over an ATM network. The method 600 starts at 602 and proceedsto block 604 where an input ATM setup message is intercepted from aningress ATM edge switch of an ATM network. In a preferred embodiment,the input ATM setup message is intercepted from a device side of theingress ATM edge switch.

The method 600 proceeds next to block 606 where information is extractedfrom the input ATM setup message. This may include any of variousinformation that is provided in various parameters or fields of theinput ATM setup message. For example, a VToA designator and a calledparty phone number value may be extracted from the input ATM setupmessage.

The method 600 proceeds next to block 608 where the information isanalyzed to determine if the input ATM setup message is requesting toestablish an SVC for VToA. If so, further processing occurs as will bedescribed below in another embodiment. The analysis or acts performed inblock 608 may, for example, include comparing the value or addressprovided in the called party number parameter of the input ATM setupmessage. In a preferred embodiment, the VToA designator will be storedin the called party number parameter of the input ATM message.

Proceeding next to block 610, an alias ATM address of a called party CPEis generated (which could also be phrased “determined” or “located”instead of generated). The alias ATM address of the called party CPEwill correspond to or identify (i) a network gateway in communicationwith a PSTN switch through a plurality of trunk lines, and (ii) adesignated trunk line of the plurality of trunk lines. This willultimately ensure that the VToA call is routed through a designatedtrunk line, which will result in the PSTN switch calculating a correctbill. Of course, in order for alias addressing to function properly, thecalled party CPE or network gateway must be capable of receiving andbeing identified by multiple alias ATM addresses, and the called partyCPE or network gateway must be capable of selecting an appropriate trunkline of the available plurality of trunk lines between the networkgateway and a corresponding PSTN switch.

The alias ATM address may be generated, determined or located usingvirtually any parameter or variable, either alone or in combination. Inone embodiment, the called party phone number value is used to search adatabase or table to locate a corresponding alias ATM address of thecalled party CPE. In another embodiment, the called party phone numbervalue is used to identify the called party CPE and, a calling partyphone number value is used to determine the appropriate trunk line sothat an appropriate or agreed upon billing rate will be applied by thePSTN. It should be understood, though, that virtually any availableinformation, even the time of day the call is made, to generate thealias ATM address of the called party CPE or network gateway.

In an alternative embodiment, the method 600 may, using the intelligentnetwork, determine that the called party phone number should betranslated, forwarded, or associated with another called party phonenumber. In such a case, the method 600 will determine the “new” calledparty phone number, which may be used in place of the original calledparty phone number.

The method 600 proceeds next to block 612, where an output ATM setupmessage is generated that includes the alias ATM address of the calledparty CPE that identifies the CPE or network gateway and the desiredtrunk line to communicate with the PSTN. It should also be noted thatany of a variety of intelligent network telephony services and featuresmay be provided at or before block 612. It should also be noted that acalling party phone number value and an ATM address of calling party CPEmay also be provided in the input ATM setup message, as part of theinformation generated at block 606, and in determining how suchintelligent network VToA services and features should be carried out. Atblock 612, the called party phone number value will also, preferably, beprovided as part of the output ATM setup message that is generated.

Proceeding next to block 614, the output ATM setup message iscommunicated to the ingress ATM edge switch of the ATM network. In apreferred embodiment, the output ATM setup message is received at anetwork side of the ingress ATM edge switch. The output ATM setupmessage is then routed or communicated through the ATM network until itreaches a corresponding egress ATM edge switch. The method 600 ends atblock 616.

In a preferred embodiment, the blocks 604, 606 and 612 are performedusing an ATM signaling intercept processor. Similarly, in a preferredembodiment, the analysis performed in the blocks 608, 610 and anyapplicable intelligent network VToA services and features are performedusing a multi-service control point. Although not required, in apreferred embodiment, the input ATM setup message will include the VToAdesignator stored in the called party number parameter, the called partyphone number value stored in the called party subaddress parameter, theATM address of the calling party CPE stored in the calling party number,and the calling party phone number value stored in the calling partysubaddress parameter. Similarly, the output ATM setup message willinclude the alias ATM address of the called party CPE stored in thecalled party number parameter, the called party phone number valuestored in the called party subaddress parameter, the ATM address ofcalling party CPE stored in the calling party number, and the callingparty phone number value stored in the calling party subaddress.

FIGS. 7 a and 7 b are flowcharts that illustrate a method 700 forproviding VToA and alias addressing using an intelligent network and aswitched virtual circuit over an ATM network, according to anotheraspect of the present invention. The method 700 begins at block 702 andproceeds to block 704. At block 704 a request to make a VToA call isreceived at an ingress CPE that includes a called party phone numbervalue. In one embodiment, a telephone or computer configured withtelephony software is used to request a VToA call that is received atthe CPE, which may be implemented in one embodiment as an enterprisegateway. Thus, the enterprise gateway would receive the request to makethe VToA call from the telephony device.

At block 706, an input ATM setup message is generated at the CPE.Although any of a variety of values may be generated in connection withthe input ATM setup message, a called party phone number and a VToAdesignator are stored in designated parameters of the input ATM setupmessage, as it is generated.

The method 700 proceeds next to block 708 where the input ATM setupmessage is provided from the ingress CPE and is received at an ingressATM edge switch. This ingress ATM edge switch may be considered to bepart of the ATM network. At block 710, the input ATM setup message isintercepted from the ingress ATM edge switch. This will preferably beachieved using an ATM signaling intercept processor.

The method 700 proceeds next to block 712 where information is extractedfrom the input ATM setup message. Generally, this information willinclude the VToA designator and the called party phone number, whichwere stored and/or generated with the input ATM setup message at block706. In a preferred embodiment, the VToA designator value will be storedin the called party number parameter of the input ATM setup message, andthe called party phone number value will be stored in the called partysubaddress parameter of the input ATM setup message. In a preferredembodiment, the acts described in block 712 may be performed by the ATMsignaling intercept processor. Once the information has been extracted,the method 700 proceeds next to block 714. At block 714, the informationis analyzed to determine if the VToA designator is present. In apreferred embodiment, this will be performed by a multi-service controlpoint. If the VToA designator is found or is present in the informationextracted from the input ATM setup message, this indicates that arequest is being made for a VToA call using an SVC of the ATM network.

Proceeding next to block 716, an alias ATM address of a called party CPEis generated (which could also be phrased “determined” or “located”instead of generated) using the called party phone number value. Thealias ATM address of the called party CPE will correspond to or identify(i) a network gateway in communication with a PSTN switch through aplurality of trunk lines, and (ii) a designated trunk line of theplurality of trunk lines. This will ultimately ensure that the VToA callis routed through a designated trunk line, which will result in the PSTNswitch calculating a correct bill. Of course, in order for aliasaddressing to function properly, the called party CPE or network gatewaymust be capable of receiving and being identified by multiple alias ATMaddresses, and the called party CPE or network gateway must be capableof selecting an appropriate trunk line of the available plurality oftrunk lines between the network gateway and a corresponding PSTN switch.

The alias ATM address may be generated, determined or located using thecalled party phone number value and virtually any parameter or variable,either alone or in combination. In one embodiment, the called partyphone number value is used to search a database or table to locate acorresponding alias ATM address of the called party CPE. In anotherembodiment, the called party phone number value is used to identify thecalled party CPE and, a calling party phone number value is used todetermine the appropriate trunk line so that an appropriate or agreedupon billing rate will be applied by the PSTN. It should be understood,though, that virtually any available information, even the time of daythe call is made, to generate the alias ATM address of the called partyCPE or network gateway.

In an alternative embodiment, the method 700 may, using the intelligentnetwork, determine that the called party phone number should betranslated, forwarded, or associated with another called party phonenumber. In such a case, the method 700 will determine the “new” calledparty phone number, which may be used in place of the original calledparty phone number.

Before proceeding to block 716, it should be noted that any of a varietyof known or available intelligent network services and features may beprovided at this time. Generally, it is preferable to perform as muchprocessing for such intelligent network services and features at theingress side of the connection. The available intelligent networkservices and features may be determined by any of a variety of meanssuch as by a user profile, a group profile, the attributes of thecalling party phone number, the attributes of the called party phonenumber, or the ATM addresses of the ingress and egress CPEs.

At block 718, an output ATM setup message is generated that includes thecalled party phone number value and the alias ATM address of the calledparty CPE that corresponds to a network gateway and a designated trunkline. This output ATM setup message will preferably include the aliasATM address of the called party CPE stored in the called party numberparameter of the output ATM setup message, and the called party phonenumber value stored in the called party subaddress parameter of theoutput ATM setup message. This will preferably be performed by the ATMsignaling intercept processor.

The method 700 proceeds next to block 720 where the output ATM setupmessage is communicated to the ingress ATM edge switch of the ATMnetwork. At block 722, the output ATM setup message is eventuallyreceived at an egress ATM edge switch. At this point, the output ATMsetup message will be intercepted by the intelligent network, which willpreferably be an ATM signaling intercept processor associated with theegress ATM edge switch. This is indicated in block 724. The method 700proceeds next to block 726.

At block 726, information is extracted from the output ATM setupmessage, and may be referred to as egress information. The egressinformation will generally include the alias ATM address of the calledparty CPE. At block 728, the ATM setup message is communicated to theegress ATM edge switch, so that the ATM setup message may becommunicated to the called party CPE, which may be implemented as anetwork gateway, at block 730. It should be noted that the actsperformed at block 724 through 728 may be performed by an intelligentnetwork, as described throughout. At block 732, the designated trunkline between the called party CPE and the switched PSTN is selected toestablish communications between the called party CPE and the PSTNswitch, based on the alias ATM address of the called party CPE. Themethod 700 ends at block 734.

Thus, it is apparent that there has been provided, in accordance withthe present invention, an intelligent network and method for providingVToA and alias addressing that provides improved performance and thatsatisfies one or more of the advantages set forth above. The presentinvention provides advanced intelligent network services and featuresthat dramatically increase the attractiveness of using VToA by providingthe advanced services and features, with little administrative burden orexpense to maintain, while also ensuring accurate billing when providingVToA connections with called parties connected through the PSTN.Although the preferred embodiment has been described in detail, itshould be understood that various changes, substitutions, andalterations can be made herein without departing from the scope of thepresent invention, even if all of the advantages identified above arenot present. For example, although the focus herein is primarily on VToAand alias addressing, however, application to other packet-switchedtelecommunications technologies, both individually and collectively, mayapply also to any of the technologies mentioned above or similartechnologies. Also, the techniques, systems, sub-systems, and methodsdescribed and illustrated in the preferred embodiment as discrete orseparate may be combined or integrated with other systems, modules,techniques, or methods without departing from the scope of the presentinvention. For example, the ATM signaling intercept processor and themulti-service control point may be implemented separately or together,or may by directly coupled to each other or could be coupled throughsome other interface and are not considered directly coupled to eachother but may still be in communication with one another. Other examplesof changes, substitutions, and alterations are readily ascertainable byone skilled in the art and could be made without departing from thespirit and scope of the present invention.

1. An intelligent network for use with an ATM network to set up an ATMswitched virtual circuit to provide VToA services and alias addressing,the intelligent network comprising: a multi-service control pointoperable to receive an input extracted from an input ATM setup messagethat includes a called party phone number value and a VToA designator,generate an alias ATM address of a called party CPE that corresponds toa network gateway in communication with a PSTN switch through aplurality of trunk lines and a desired trunk line of the plurality oftrunk lines, and generate an output in response for use in generating anoutput ATM setup message; an ATM signaling intercept processor operableto intercept the input ATM setup message from an ingress ATM edge switchof the ATM network, extract the input from the input ATM setup message,communicate the input to the multi-service control point, receive theoutput generated by the multi-service control point, generate the outputATM setup message using the output that includes the alias ATM address,and communicate the output ATM setup message to the ingress ATM edgeswitch of the ATM network; and a service administration operable toprovision the multi-service control point and the ATM signalingintercept processor.
 2. The intelligent network of claim 1, wherein theinput includes a calling party phone number value.
 3. The intelligentnetwork of claim 2, wherein the input includes an ATM address of thecalling party CPE.
 4. The intelligent network of claim 3, wherein thecalled party phone number value is stored in a called party subaddressparameter of the input ATM setup message, the VToA designator is storedin a called party number parameter of the input ATM setup message, thecalling party phone number value is stored in a calling party subaddressparameter of the input ATM setup message, and the ATM address of thecalling party CPE is stored in a calling party number parameter of theinput ATM setup message.
 5. The intelligent network of claim 1, whereinthe called party phone number value is stored in the called partysubaddress parameter of the input ATM setup message, the VToA designatoris stored in the called party number parameter of the input ATM setupmessage.
 6. The intelligent network of claim 1, wherein the outputincludes the alias ATM address of the called party CPE that correspondsto the network gateway and desired trunk line of the plurality of trunklines.
 7. The intelligent network of claim 6, wherein the called partyphone number value is stored in the called party subaddress parameter ofthe output ATM setup message, the alias ATM address of the called partyCPE that corresponds to the network gateway and a desired trunk line ofthe plurality of trunk lines is stored in the called party numberparameter of the output ATM setup message, the calling party phonenumber value is stored in the calling party subaddress parameter of theoutput ATM setup message, and the ATM address of the calling party CPEis stored in the calling party number parameter of the output ATM setupmessage.
 8. The intelligent network of claim 1, wherein themulti-service control point determines if the input ATM setup messagerequests a SVC for VToA by analyzing the VToA designator portion of theinput.
 9. The intelligent network of claim 1, wherein the multi-servicecontrol point is operable to receive an input extracted from an inputATM release message and to generate an output in response for use ingenerating an output ATM release message, and wherein the ATM signalingintercept processor operable to intercept the input ATM release messagefrom an ingress ATM edge switch of the ATM network, to extract the inputfrom the input ATM release message, to communicate the input to themultiservice control point, to receive the output generated by themulti-service control point, to generate the output ATM release messageusing the output, and communicate the output ATM signaling message tothe ingress ATM edge switch of the ATM network.
 10. The intelligentnetwork of claim 1, wherein the ATM edge switch receives the input ATMsetup message from an enterprise gateway.
 11. The intelligent network ofclaim 1, wherein the multi-service control point is operable todetermine if the called party phone number value is valid, and whereinthe input ATM setup message is rejected if the called party phone numbervalue is not valid.
 12. The intelligent network of claim 1, furthercomprising: a second multi-service control point operable to receive anegress input extracted from the output ATM setup message that includesthe called party phone number value, and generate an egress output inresponse, a second ATM signaling intercept processor operable tointercept the output ATM setup message from an egress ATM edge switch ofthe ATM network, extract the egress input from the output ATM setupmessage, communicate the egress input to the second multi-servicecontrol point, receive the egress output generated by the multi-servicecontrol point, generate an ATM setup message using the egress output,and communicate the ATM setup message to the egress ATM edge switch ofthe ATM network, and wherein the service administration is operable toprovision the second multi-service control point and the second ATMsignaling intercept processor.
 13. The intelligent network of claim 12,wherein the second multi-service control point and the multiservicecontrol point are the same multi-service control point.
 14. An ATMtelecommunications network with an intelligent network for providingVToA services and alias addressing using an ATM switched virtualcircuit, the ATM telecommunications network comprising: an ingress CPEoperable to generate an input ATM setup message; an egress CPE incommunication with a PSTN switch through a plurality of trunk lines, theegress CPE operable to receive an ATM setup message and to select one ofthe plurality of trunk lines based on the ATM setup message to use tocommunicate with the PSTN switch; an ATM network operable to communicateATM cells and ATM messages; an ingress ATM edge switch in communicationwith the ATM network and the ingress CPE, the ingress ATM edge switchoperable to receive the input ATM setup message from the ingress CPE andto communicate an output ATM setup message to the ATM network; an egressATM edge switch in communication with the ATM network and the egressCPE, the egress ATM edge switch operable to receive the output ATM setupmessage from the ATM network and to communicate an ATM setup message tothe egress CPE; an intelligent network that includes: a multi-servicecontrol point operable to receive the input extracted from the input ATMsetup message that includes a called party phone number value and a VToAdesignator, generate an alias ATM address of a called party CPE thatcorresponds to a network gateway in communication with a PSTN switchthrough a plurality of trunk lines and a desired trunk line of theplurality of trunk lines, and generate an output that includes the aliasATM address in response for use in generating an output ATM setupmessage, an ATM signaling intercept processor operable to intercept theinput ATM setup message from the ingress ATM edge switch, extract the,input from the input ATM setup message, communicate the input to themulti-service control point, receive the output generated by themulti-service control point, generate the output ATM setup message usingthe output, and communicate the output ATM setup message to the ingressATM edge switch of the ATM network, a second multi-service control pointoperable to receive an egress input extracted from the output ATM setupmessage that includes the called party phone number value, and generatean egress output in response, a second ATM signaling intercept processoroperable to intercept the output ATM setup message from the egress ATMedge switch of the ATM network, extract the egress input from the outputATM setup message, communicate the egress input to the secondmulti-service control point, receive the egress output generated by themulti-service control point, generate an ATM setup message using theoutput, and communicate the ATM setup message to the egress ATM edgeswitch of the ATM network, a service administration operable toprovision the multi-service control point, the ATM signaling interceptprocessor, the second multi-service control point and the second ATMsignaling intercept processor.
 15. The ATM telecommunications network ofclaim 14, wherein the input includes a calling party phone number valueand an ATM address of the calling party CPE, and wherein the calledparty phone number value is stored in a called party subaddressparameter of the input ATM setup message, the VToA designator is storedin a called party number parameter of the input ATM setup message, thecalling party phone number value is stored in a calling party subaddressparameter of the input ATM setup message, and the ATM address of thecalling party CPE is stored in a calling party number parameter of theinput ATM setup message.
 16. The ATM telecommunications network of claim15, wherein the called party phone number value is stored in a calledparty subaddress parameter of the output ATM setup message, the aliasATM address of the called party CPE that corresponds to the networkgateway and a desired trunk line of the plurality of trunk lines isstored in a called party number parameter of the output ATM setupmessage, the calling party phone number value is stored in a callingparty subaddress parameter of the output ATM setup message, and the ATMaddress of the calling party CPE is stored—in a calling party numberparameter of the output ATM setup message.
 17. A method for providingVToA and alias addressing using an intelligent network and a switchedvirtual circuit over an ATM network, the method comprising: interceptingan input ATM setup message from an ingress ATM edge switch of the ATMnetwork; extracting information from the input ATM setup message;analyzing the information to determine if the input ATM setup message isa request to set up a SVC for VToA; generating an alias ATM address of acalled party CPE that corresponds to a network gateway in communicationwith a PSTN switch through a plurality of trunk lines and a designatedtrunk line of the plurality of trunk lines; generating an output ATMsetup message that includes the alias ATM address of the called partyCPE that corresponds to the network gateway and a designated trunk lineof the plurality of trunk lines; and communicating the output ATM setupmessage to the ingress ATM edge switch of the ATM network.
 18. Themethod of claim 17, wherein analyzing the information to determine ifthe input ATM setup message is a request to set up a SVC for VToAfurther includes processing the information to provide VToA services.19. The method of claim 17, wherein generating an alias ATM addressincludes using a called party number of the information extracted fromthe input ATM setup message.
 20. The method of claim 17, whereingenerating an alias ATM address includes using a called party number anda calling party number of the information extracted from the input ATMsetup message.
 21. A method for providing VToA and alias addressingusing an intelligent network and a switched virtual circuit over an ATMnetwork, the method comprising: receiving a request at an ingress CPE tomake a VToA call that includes a called party phone number value;generating an input ATM setup message at the CPE that includes thecalled party phone number and a VToA designator stored in a designatedparameter of the input ATM setup message; receiving the input ATM setupmessage at a device side of an ingress ATM edge switch of the ATMnetwork; intercepting the input ATM setup message from the device sideof the ingress ATM edge switch of the ATM network; extractinginformation from the input ATM setup message that includes the VToAdesignator and the called party phone number; analyzing the informationto determine if the VToA designator is present; generating an alias ATMaddress of a called party CPE that corresponds to a network gateway incommunication with a PSTN switch through a plurality of trunk lines anda designated trunk line of the plurality of trunk lines using the calledparty phone number; generating an output ATM setup message that includesthe alias ATM address of the called party CPE that corresponds to thenetwork gateway and the designated trunk line of the plurality of trunklines and the called party phone number; communicating the output ATMsetup message to a network side of the ingress ATM edge switch of theATM network; receiving the output ATM setup message at a network side ofan egress ATM edge switch; intercepting the output ATM setup messagefrom the network side of the egress ATM edge switch of the ATM network;extracting egress information from the output ATM setup message thatincludes the alias ATM address of the called party CPE that correspondsto the network gateway and a desired trunk line of the plurality oftrunk lines; communicating the output ATM setup message to a device sideof the egress ATM edge switch; and communicating the output ATM setupmessage to the called party CPE.
 22. The method of claim 21, whereingenerating an input ATM setup message at the CPE includes storing theVToA designator in the called party address parameter and storing thecalled party phone number value in the called party subaddressparameter.
 23. The method of claim 21, wherein generating an output ATMsetup message includes storing the alias ATM address of the called partyCPE that corresponds to the network gateway and the designated trunkline of the plurality of trunk lines in the called party addressparameter and storing the called party phone number value stored in thecalled party subaddress.
 24. The method of claim 21, further comprising:processing the information to provide VToA services after analyzing theinformation to determine if the VToA designator is present.
 25. Themethod of claim 21, wherein generating an alias ATM address includesusing the called party number and the calling party number of theinformation extracted from the input ATM setup message.
 26. The methodof claim 21, further comprising: selecting one of the plurality of trunklines at the called party CPE to establish communications between thenetwork gateway and the PSTN switch based on the alias ATM address.